Avianca announces new Costa Rica/Puerto Rico route
The new connection is expected to generate $6 million for the island’s economy in its first season.
Avianca Airlines announced a new direct route between San José, Costa Rica, and San Juan, Puerto Rico, beginning March 31. The route is expected to generate approximately $6 million during its initial season, with its three weekly flights adding 16,200 seats to the existing inventory.
The flight will operate on Mondays, Thursdays and Fridays, arriving at Luis Muñoz Marín International Airport (SJU) at 12:40 p.m. and departing for Juan Santamaría International Airport at 2:10 p.m.
This marks the first direct route between the two cities in more than two decades and Avianca’s first route connecting San José and San Juan, government and airline officials said.
“Puerto Rico is a key destination for tourism and business thanks to its strategic location in the Caribbean, modern infrastructure and rich cultural heritage. For this reason, we want to provide more connectivity to boost the development of the island and open more opportunities for the world to get to know this impressive destination, while giving Puerto Ricans more options to explore the world,” said Alejandro Benítez, senior vice president of corporate development at Avianca.
The new route joins Avianca’s existing routes from Medellín and Bogotá, Colombia, to San Juan.
“The efforts of the Puerto Rico Tourism Company are focused on diversifying and increasing the options for traveling to the island from the Caribbean, the United States, Latin America and Europe,” said Tourism Co. Executive Director Willianette Robles-Cancel.
“We’re very excited about the upcoming start of this new direct route from San José through Avianca. The operation of this flight offers a greater connection with Latin America, enabling the arrival of a greater number of passengers from Costa Rica and other international destinations,” she said.
“This will result in the strengthening of all sectors of our tourism industry,” Robles-Cancel added.
